Miranda
Uhl

Swimming

Prior to Beijing, Miranda Uhl made the most of her biggest international event to date, the 2007 Parapan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Against top international swimmers, Uhl won five gold and three silver medals. The exclamation point came in the 400m freestyle, where she won gold while breaking the American record in the S6 class.

After getting her first taste of success on the international stage, Uhl knew she was prepared for the most important of all competitions: the Paralympic Games.

In Beijing, Uhl participated in seven swimming events. After narrowly missing the podium in the 400m freestyle S6, Uhl broke through in the 200m individual medley SM6, setting a new world record and winning her first career Paralympic Games gold medal.

Uhl began swimming competitively at the age of 10, when she swam for a summer team and began competing in the Dwarf Athletic Association of America (DAAA). At the DAAA, she learned about Paralympic competition.